Electronic Arts, NFL Come Together for Tonight’s Ultimate Madden Bowl Final

Electronic Arts and the NFL continue to showcase the entertainment power of esports with the EA SPORTS Ultimate Madden Bowl Final tonight at 7 pm ET. This is the dramatic close to the 2022 Madden Championship Series and the biggest Madden NFL esports event in franchise history with record media distribution for the competition. The EA esports production team is leveraging AI, cloud-based systems, and proprietary technology to manage a web of feeds with lightning-fast speed.

The Ultimate Madden Bowl is the most dynamic broadcast experience yet, featuring commentary from top NFL pros and analysts (Derwin James, Hollywood Brown, Marcus Spears, and more), halftime show performance by Billboard 200 rapper Moneybagg Yo, and elite Madden gameplay. In addition to livestreaming on Madden NFL channels, the EA broadcast team will package and distribute Ultimate Madden Bowl content across eight total platforms – including an ESPN Ultimate Madden Bowl Special on ESPN 1, the Madden NFL channel on iHeart Media, and special NFL athlete-led broadcast on NFL Channels.

Key highlights of the production – which is being overseen by Royce Dickerson, Executive Producer of Madden Competitive Gaming Content & Programming – include:

• Fully Customizable Virtual Set: EA’s virtual set uniquely captures a Los Angeles look and feel to make viewers feel as though they are in the city at the Super Bowl of Madden esports – wherever they are tuning in from. Features include the Hollywood Walk of Fame, palm trees, the beach, and more.

• Improved Audio Capture: Cloud-based AI and microphones deployed at remote contribution locations will help to capture a more immersive soundscape for new audio-only mediums, including the radio show on the iHeartMedia app.

• Virtual Network Operations Center: The remote system allows the EA broadcast team to push custom feeds to distribution partners without compromising speed.

• Closed Captioning: EA is introducing an upgraded distribution system to enable both closed captioning and language translation for Madden broadcasts on AVOD platforms.

The Ultimate Madden Bowl Final is available on EA Madden NFL Twitch, Madden NFL Championship Series YouTube, NFL YouTube, Watch ESPN, and the ESPN App. Additionally, in a first-of-its-kind partnership, anyone can listen live on the iHeartRadio App EA SPORTS Madden NFL channel for free. For the first time, fans can also watch through the eyes of football greats as Chargers’ Derwin James Jr., Ravens’ Marquise “Hollywood” Brown, and ESPN NFL analyst Marcus Spears headline a special exclusive broadcast on @NFL Twitter, as well as the free ad-supported NFL Channel available on VIZIO WatchFree+, Tubi+, Peacock, and Pluto TV.

“Competition and entertainment are at the root of EA’s long-term belief in the power of esports,” says Anthony Stevenson, Senior Vice President of Strategic Growth Brand for Electronic Arts. “It’s amazing to celebrate our Madden NFL Championship Series Finale with such incredible partners, talent, and distribution.”

The premiere of the Ultimate Madden Bowl Halftime Show features Madden NFL 22 soundtrack artist and Multiplatinum musician Moneybagg Yo, along with special guest Blocboy JB, as they elevate the esports event.

Following the February 8 broadcasts, EA SPORTS and ESPN kick off Super Bowl LVI weekend with the exclusive Ultimate Madden Bowl ESPN Special, a unique presentation of the esports final. ESPN will air the broadcast on Friday, February 11, at 8:30 pm ET, which marks the Madden NFL Championship Series debut on the channel. The program will re-air once again on Sunday, February 13, at 9 am ET. NFL Media personality Kimmi Chex serves as the Ultimate Madden Bowl ESPN Special host.

“The Ultimate Madden Bowl athlete broadcast provides a first-ever opportunity to bring a Madden NFL esports storyline to the NFL fan in a way told by some of their favorite NFL players and Legends,” says Joe Ruggiero, Senior Vice President of Consumer Products at the NFL. “Working with EA provides the opportunity to connect with the next generation of fans who have consistently shown a desire to engage in interactive, digital experiences. Tonight’s Ultimate Madden Bowl cast is the perfect example of an authentic way we are customizing esports content with the NFL fan in mind.”

Live from the Madden NFL Championship Series virtual set, tonight’s Ultimate Madden Bowl Final broadcast pits 7th-ranked Wesley vs. top-seeded Henry with a $1 million prize purse majority share on the line. NFL Hall of Famer Tony Gonzalez voices the show open, reprising the role he served throughout the Ultimate Madden Bowl competition.